


everybody got this broken feeling

by TheGodWith5Yen



Series: Building the Universe [5]
Category: DCU (Comics), Superman - All Media Types
Genre: Grief/Mourning, Panic Attacks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-02
Updated: 2018-02-02
Packaged: 2019-03-12 19:45:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,638
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13554309
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheGodWith5Yen/pseuds/TheGodWith5Yen
Summary: 2018. The destruction of another earth brings Clark two new family members.





	everybody got this broken feeling

**Author's Note:**

> Title from Everybody Knows by Sigrid

**_February 1, 2018_ **

The sky was shrouded in dust and pieces of stray rock from the other destroyed earth lay haphazardly where ever it had fallen. Heroes lay, fallen, defeated. They managed to save their own earth, their own world, but a whole other one was destroyed. Gone from existence. Forever. 

Clark found himself mourning yet another planet he had never known. He mourned for the lost souls who had been living their life blissfully unaware until the moment they could see their world attempting to collide with another, until they were gone into nothing. He mourned for the heroes he had seen struggling to save their world, their loved ones, their life. Tears streamed down his face. He couldn’t stop them. He had seen a version of himself. It was even more terrifying, watching himself (an older, tired version of himself) working, pushing, trying so hard to save a planet. And fail. 

His hands were full of dust, miniscule pieces of the other earth. Clark didn’t get sick, hadn’t really in years, it was impossible these days unless someone had stuck ground up Kryptonite in his tea (something Lex Luthor had done… more than once). But oh, oh man, did Clark have the incessant need to curl up and weep. His stomach was in waves, something close to the anxiety he used to get when he was younger, back when he hadn’t had a grip on his powers and could be sent reeling at any moment. Something liquid was crawling its way up his throat, burning, climbing and oh Rao oh God was that vomit? It was disgusting and hurt and made Clark’s eyes tear up more but he couldn’t raise his filthy, world stained hands up to his eyes to wipe them. Oh! Was this a panic attack? He hadn’t had one in years, since he was seventeen, but he wouldn’t be surprised if this was the beginning of one. 

That’s when he spotted her. 

He immediately calmed down, remembering he was in front of people, even if they didn’t give a damn about him right now, and that he was  _ Superman _ . He couldn’t break right now like this. His vision cleared and he felt something akin to normal, though everything still felt blurry, as though a filter rested over the world. 

She had been from the other earth, flying next to their version of Superman. She had a striking resemble to Kara, except she was much older to his young cousins eighteen years. Her hair was dyed a muted blonde and cut below her chin. She wore a white armored suit with a red cape over her shoulders. The woman stood tall, gaping at Clark. She took a step forward before shaking her head, glancing all around. 

Batman was just getting back to his feet, checking up on his children before any others. Hal and Barry were lying next to each other, exhausted, staring up at the sky, hands reaching up as if they could touch what had been. Black Canary was talking in a low voice to Oracle over her comms, vacantly watching the speedster and Green Lantern. Most of everyone was in shock over the fight this time around. After years of being superheroes, they had never experienced this. Sure, the fight with Darkseid that brought the Justice League had been bad, and hard, but this-

This was a whole new level.

They had succeeded, they were alive, their world was only damaged. They had also, undeniably failed. 

Before the woman could speak, a small figure, a blur of black and blue, rushed past her, towards Clark himself. A tiny body, a boy, was hugging his leg, crying, sobbing against it. The woman from the other earth stepped forward, arm reached out, mouth open. Clark knelt down to look at the boy. He- he must have been from the other earth as well. He had seen a ball of blue being held at some point, but hadn’t thought of it while in the middle of the crisis. 

“You’re alright son,” Clark said as reassuring as his quivering voice and rumbling stomach could be. The young boy sobbed harder and louder, his dark hands holding tight to Clark’s red cape. Of course he wasn't alright. “What’s your name?” 

The boy pulled back. His eyes were watery and puffy and tinted a dark red from tears. His tears stained through his dirt covered cheeks. Tears kept falling, much like Clark’s only a few minutes before. The young boy examined Clark’s face. “J- Jon,” he mumbled out. 

“Well, Jon,” Clark began to speak, not sure how to console him, Kara would be better at this, but she was off, most likely in San Francisco with the Titans to protect and save their planet like the League here in the east coast.

Before Clark could get a word of nothing reassurances out, the young boy said, loudly, loud enough that his voice ringed across where all the League stood or sat or agonized, “Jonathan Kent.” 

This boy- he- 

This was the son to the other Superman. He had to be. Clark could see a resemble of himself now- and Lois. Clark really looked at him. Jon Kent was a tiny boy, maybe nine years old, with curly hair flopping over his dust covered face and piercing blue eyes. This was- he was- The weight of it all made Clark’s knees buckle and he leaned forward and brought the child tighter into his arms. 

“I’m so sorry Jon, I’m so sorry. I’m not him, I’m so sorry.” Apologies came rushing out of his mouth as his arms wrapped around the child, around Jon Kent, son of Superman. The child child hugged back, tight, chanting out similar babbles of, “It’s okay, it’s fine, I’m okay, it’s okay.”

It wasn’t. None of this was okay. 

They would have to find a place for Jon, Clark would be happy to take him in, if he was comfortable with it. He and Lois did have the face of his parents, that would most likely be upsetting and off putting for him. And what about the woman? They would have to help her settle into this world. Maybe he would want to stay with her, or maybe Clark’s mother, though he wasn’t sure if she could take caring for another Kryptonian with a heartbreaking past. 

Before his mind could set off, the woman spoke in a low, shaking voice. “I never thought I would see another planet I called home destroyed.” She had a slight Kryptonian accent. She must be the alternate version of Kara, only older, like Clark’s own other earth counterpart had clearly been. “Everyone… everything… gone. Again.” 

The child in Clark’s arms teared away, looking towards the woman. “What now? Do- do you think any others have survived? Like us?” His arms wrapped around his middle, making him appear smaller than he was. 

“I don’t know Jon.” The woman stepped forward, blonde curls lifted by the slight wind, fluttering over her face, as she came up near them both. She lifted her hand and placed it on top of Clark’s chest- the ‘S,’ the symbol for the House of El as well as “Hope,” She said, “we need to hold onto our hope. We have lost everything but that- and each other.” 

Jon threw himself at her, causing her to take a step back, her hand gone from Clark’s chest, resting instead on the young boys back. There they stayed, the blonde woman kneeling into their embrace, until everyone else decided it was time to get back to life and business as usual after a disaster such as this one. 

“Hey Kal,” the woman called as she an Jon finally broke apart, “you got a Fortress of Solitude too?” 

Clark felt a slight rise in temperature on his cheeks. Chloe and Lois (plus Kon, Kara, and Chris by extension due to their bad influence) had been jokingly calling the Fortress that for years, and now it was most likely going to stick with this woman here too. “It’s not- it’s just- yes. Yes, I do. Um.” Might as well live with it then.  

“Why don’t we take our meeting over there? Discuss what is to come for me and my nephew on this earth.” She smiled, slightly, but her eyes were still full of grief.

Clark agreed. They were too open at the moment, too many people around, to have the conversation they would need to have. A sense of dread filled Clark’s chest, tight and uncomfortable. The last time he had to do this was with Kara, and that had been hard enough for him. This was harder, a thousand time harder, and by God, Clark was not made for these overly emotional things, no matter how good of hugs and pep talks he could give. Most of his famous Superman speeches were thoughts he mulled over for hours, written down on paper with Lois on his side to help settle any bumbling thoughts. And yeah, he could do it, he could manage, he was Superman, he could talk, he could reassure them that they could live here on this new planet, with faces both familiar and foreign. 

They flew away in relative silence, Jon hanging tight onto his aunt’s shoulders, face pressed into her red cape, sobs almost blending into the loud rushing wind. The woman spoke halfway to their destination. “Kara. Karen. Power Girl. I wonder what other name I will adopt here.”

Clark stayed silent for a few seconds, unsure how to answer. He settled with “Just stay who you are.” Which, sounded stupid in his ears, but Karen simply tilted her head, gave a sigh and whisper,just loud enough for Clark to hear, “I suppose we make with what hand Rao has dealt us.” 

**Author's Note:**

> So apparently I only write angst or fluff! This came to mind while trying to figure out how Jon and Karen would fit into this world. I knew I was going to have Lois and Clark both be too scared to try for a child or be unable to have any children at all. So, while researching more about Jon and Karen I realized the perfectly, horrible situation to include them. So, yes, Earth-2 is gone, though some of its people will live on in Earth-1. 
> 
> You know, once the sadness is gone, Lois is so going to call Clark out on following Bruce's influence on adoption. A fourth kid and an adult? She's going to be surprised when a Kryptonian dog is added into the mix. 
> 
> Well... I hope ya'll enjoyed this, I had a... time writing this (may have cried a bit). Please leave a kudos or a comment if you enjoyed or even read the other fics in this series! Thanks so much <3


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